Roger Federer, 32 years old and the seventh-ranked men's tennis player in the world—that last bit sounds weird no matter how you say it—slid into the interview chair at the U.S. Open on Saturday, dressed in a gray T-shirt bearing his familiar, august RF logo. His face was expressionless. He appeared neither happy nor unhappy to be there.

He knew. Federer knew that his role in this tournament had already been assigned—that no matter what he offered up this afternoon at this introductory press event, the expectations for his 2013 Open were as modest as they'd been in many years. There had been a handful of losses to lower-ranked players, and concerns about Federer's game abounded—a story over the weekend in the New York Times asked if tennis had "left him behind." Though these questions were legitimate and wrapped in a dutiful respect for his record 17 Grand Slams and reputation as a sportsman, it felt strange. A five-time U.S. Open champion, among the best to ever play the game, Federer was no longer the main event in New York.

A few minutes before in the same room, Novak Djokovic, the current world No. 1, had acknowledged that it was "unusual" to see that seven next to Federer's name, "after being so dominant and consistent every year in the last 10 years." Djokovic and Federer are deeply intertwined antagonists here—in 2007 Federer beat then 20-year-old Djokovic for his fourth Open title; Djokovic saved match points against Federer in the semifinals in 2010 as well as in 2011, when the Serbian won his first championship in Queens. In his press conference Djokovic was deferential toward Federer—"Look, you know, I am sure he knows what he's doing"—but he also has other objects gaining in his rearview, chief among them Rafael Nadal, who has not lost on hard courts since returning to tennis from injury earlier this year. There's last year's Open champion, recent Wimbledon winner Andy Murray. Argentina's Juan Martin del Potro. David Ferrer. Younger strivers like Milos Raonic, Jerzy Janowicz, Grigor Dimitrov. Tennis felt less clustered at the top than it did just a few years back. "This is kind of a life cycle," Djokovic said philosophically. "The way it goes."

ENLARGE

Federer in 2004 with the first of his five U.S. Open trophies.
Getty Images

Federer is also adapting to this new order. He is a chaser, not the chased. Looming in his Open bracket is a possible quarterfinal showdown against Nadal, his most indelible rival, whom he has never faced in New York. A Nadal-Federer Open quarterfinal? It sounds like a porterhouse for breakfast. But this is what the road looks like for Federer. Earlier rounds feel more dangerous; finals weekends less assured than in tournaments past. Though Federer has made no indication of wanting to leave tennis soon—he's shown interest in the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro—there's a growing appreciation that his elegant game can't stay forever. The Journal's Tom Perrotta and Carl Bialik wrote a story last week about star-struck players still eager to play their tennis hero before he departs. People talk about seeing Federer like they talk about seeing the Stones. (The U.S. Open schedulers seem to realize this, putting Federer's Monday night opening-round match on the bill with defending women's champion Serena Williams's.)

At his press conference, Federer deflected a predictable assortment of questions, most of them related to his aging and adjustment. He said he wasn't terribly concerned about his ranking. "Number seven I don't think is a huge drop from Number four," he said, adding: "The older you get, the less you pay a bit of attention to it."

He was asked about the new, larger-head racket he experimented with this summer; he said he will experiment again with rackets after the Open, but he won't play with it here. Federer also claimed that his back, which had troubled him earlier, was no longer a concern.

Federer said that his body actually felt better in the mornings now than it did when he was younger, when he had "incredible" muscle pain and sometimes struggled to get out of bed. He spent more time warming up now, but so did everyone these days. Tennis had become such a grinding, physical game that required preparation and great attention to sleep, nutrition and stretching. This did not faze him. "I've always worked very hard," he said.

He was asked about Nadal, and he said was excited at the prospect of finally meeting him in New York, but he emphasized that A) he had to get to there first and B) he wanted more than just to face Nadal.

"Clearly when I come here, I don't just look at trying to make quarters," he said. It was a whiff of that famous confidence, and it felt both defiant and welcome. Was it too early for the tributes and the long farewell? "I'm here trying to win the tournament," Roger Federer said. He believed it, and maybe this was enough.

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